Average Household Income in Canada 2026 | By Province & Family Type

The most commonly cited household-income statistics for Canada are not actually a single “average household income” number. Statistics Canada’s flagship income release, the Canadian Income Survey (CIS), reports income separately for economic families (two or more related people sharing a dwelling) and unattached individuals (people not part of an economic family), and its headline figures are medians, not averages.

For 2024 (the most recent reference year, released April 29, 2026):

The same survey table also reports the average after-tax income of economic families and unattached individuals combined: $94,900 in 2024. Because averages are pulled up by high earners, it sits above the $75,500 combined median. A separate Statistics Canada release based on T1 Family File tax data, which groups people into census families rather than economic families, put the average after-tax income of census families and persons not in a census family at $82,610 in 2023, the most recent year of that series.

Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, Table 11-10-0190-01 (April 29, 2026 release); “Average after-tax income of Canadian families edges down in 2023,” The Daily, July 18, 2025.

Average vs Median: Why the Gap Matters

The average (mean) income is higher than the median because Canada’s income distribution has a long right tail: a relatively small number of very high-earning families and individuals pull the average upward, while the median reflects the income of the family or person exactly in the middle of the distribution. For questions like “how do I compare to most Canadians?” the median is the more useful benchmark. For questions about total income flowing through the economy, the average is more relevant.

Income by Province

In 2024, the three highest provincial medians were in Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia. Alberta’s figure reflects the energy sector and a workforce concentrated in higher-paying trades and professional roles.

The four lowest provincial medians were in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.

“Combined” refers to economic families and unattached individuals together, the broadest comparable measure Statistics Canada publishes by province. Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, Table 11-10-0190-01, 2024 reference year.

Territories

In 2024, the highest median after-tax income of any province or territory was in the Northwest Territories. Territorial figures come with important context: remote work premiums, resource-sector wages, and federal northern allowances inflate earnings, while the same factors dramatically increase the cost of groceries, housing, and essential services. Statistics Canada also cautions that territorial estimates carry more year-to-year sampling variability than provincial ones because of smaller sample sizes.

Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, Table 11-10-0190-01, 2024 reference year.

Income by Family Type

Family structure is one of the strongest predictors of income in Canada. In 2024, the median after-tax income was $163,900 for couples living with other relatives (often adult children who also earn income), $133,900 for couples with children, $68,700 for one-parent families and $41,000 for unattached individuals. The differences reflect both the presence of a second earner and, for lone parents, the disproportionate impact of childcare costs.

Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, Table 11-10-0190-01, 2024 reference year.

Two-parent families with children ($133,900) reflect the fact that most two-parent families have two earners. When that second income is absent, as for most one-parent families ($68,700) or unattached individuals ($41,000), one income has to cover expenses (housing, food) that do not scale down proportionally.

Income Trends (2020–2024)

Statistics Canada’s Canadian Income Survey shows the combined median after-tax income of economic families and unattached individuals (expressed in 2024 constant dollars, so already adjusted for inflation) as follows:

Because these figures are already in constant (inflation-adjusted) 2024 dollars, the year-over-year changes reflect real purchasing-power changes, not just nominal income growth. The dip in 2022 reflects the end of COVID-19 pandemic benefits (government transfers fell sharply that year) combined with 6.8% inflation, while market income was roughly flat; the partial recovery in 2023 and 2024 reflects inflation cooling while nominal incomes continued to grow.

Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, Table 11-10-0190-01; 2022 inflation is the annual-average all-items CPI change (Table 18-10-0005-01).

What Is a Good Household Income in Canada?

“Good” is subjective and highly dependent on location, family size, and lifestyle expectations. Statistics Canada does not publish a “comfortable” or “high” income threshold by city. As a general frame of reference, the national median after-tax income for an economic family was $108,900 in 2024, but that same income affords a very different lifestyle in Winnipeg or Halifax than it does in Toronto or Vancouver, where housing costs consume a much larger share of a typical family’s budget. For broader context on how income compares to living costs across the country, see our guide to cost of living in Canada by city.

After-tax vs. before-tax income

When comparing incomes, it is important to understand the difference between before-tax (gross) and after-tax (net) income. The figures throughout this page are after-tax: Statistics Canada’s Canadian Income Survey uses after-tax income as its primary measure because it better reflects what families and individuals actually have available to spend.

Your tax bracket determines how much of your income goes to taxes. The income tax calculator can help you estimate your after-tax income based on your province of residence. You can also use the salary calculator to see a detailed breakdown of deductions from each paycheque.

Key Takeaways

• Statistics Canada publishes average household income only with the five-yearly census ($87,700 after tax in 2020); its annual Canadian Income Survey reports median after-tax income for economic families ($108,900 in 2024) and unattached individuals ($41,000) separately
• The same survey put the average after-tax income of economic families and unattached individuals combined at $94,900 for 2024, above the $75,500 median
• Alberta had the highest provincial median in 2024 (combined); the median was $85,300 in Alberta and $79,500 in Ontario
• Two-parent families with children ($133,900 median) reflect two incomes plus, often, peak earning years; couples living with other relatives such as adult children had $163,900
• The highest median of any province or territory was in the Northwest Territories; the Northwest Territories’ median was $116,100, with a higher cost of living

Methodology and sources

Data compiled from Statistics Canada’s Canadian Income Survey (Table 11-10-0190-01, 2024 reference year, released April 29, 2026) and the T1 Family File-based release “Average after-tax income of Canadian families edges down in 2023” (The Daily, July 18, 2025). All figures shown are after-tax unless otherwise noted. “Economic family” and “unattached individual” are Statistics Canada’s own terms and are used here in place of the less precise term “household,” which StatCan does not use in these particular releases.

Related Guides

• Average Salary in Canada by Occupation (2026)
• Median Income in Canada (2026)
• Average Income by City in Canada
• Income Percentile Calculator (Canada)
• Cost of Living in Canada by City
• Retirement Income Strategies in Canada